Welcome to the Imaging Resource Facility (IRF), a central biomedical resource of St George’s University of London. The IRF provides support as well as a high standard of service to the university researchers, St. George’s NHS Trust and other academic institutions in a wide range of bioimaging disciplines.
First established in 2014, the IRF provides access to Light Microscopy, Flow Cytometry and Histology methodologies and sample preparation, all housed in a single department providing a range of imaging analysis options and the expertise to compliment them. Users of the IRF have the ability to image histology samples, cells and molecules of all varieties, and model organisms such as zebrafish using any of the light microscope, slide scanning, or Flow cytometry systems we maintain, supported by experienced staff at all stages of analysis.
The technologies offered are Light Microscopy, Flow Cytometry, and Histology; we maintain a dedicated suite for each section. Work in each section can be performed by facility staff – as a paid service - or by users of the facility.
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The Light Microscopy Suite houses a variety of microscopes offering a solution to any imaging requirements. This range of equipment allows for fast, high resolution imaging of samples using confocal, epifluorescent, brightfield, DIC, and Phase-Contrast microscopy. Live imaging is available on a number of different systems.
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Flow Cytometry: We have two FACS systems and an analyser: FACS Melody, FACSCalibur, and the Cytoflex S Analyser respectively.
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Our Histology preparation laboratory allows the automated processing of tissue samples via our Leica TP1020 Automated Tissue processor - samples can be deposited and processing set to complete at a predetermined collection time that fits to your schedule. Once processing is complete, our Leica HistoCore Arcadia embedding station allows quick and clean embedding into blocks, and once these have set, they can be sectioned using our Leica RM2255 microtome. We also provide access and use of our histology laboratory for histology and immunohistochemistry staining.
The IRF provides free of charge hands-on training with expert scientific and technical support from our staff for optimum image acquisition and has a leading role in the academic development of biomedical and medical students by offering support and training for student research projects. All new users must first register on PPMS and complete a training/ induction session with one of our staff members to be able to utilise facility systems.
If you feel your project could benefit from a specific microscopy technique, we would be very pleased to hear about it and happy to help you with the requirements for your project. For more information, general inquiries and booking training please contact us at irf@sgul.ac.uk.